In the past few years, “vertical integration” has been a hot topic for leaders in all health care businesses, from pharmacies to insurers to hospitals. Health care parent companies, including pharmacies like Walgreens Boots Alliance and CVS Health, payors like UnitedHealth Group, Cigna and Humana, and even retailers like Amazon, are racing to build a
The year is not starting with a bang, but with a slow and uncertain step forward. Inflation is still rising; the threat of a recession looms on the horizon. So how are CEOs approaching 2023? What will the year hold for health and wellness companies? To get a view of major corporate project priorities in
Good news for those paying close attention to the fight for health equity: We’re seeing a tide change in the industry. For years, many groups have been talking about the moral imperative of improving health equity, but recently there’s been increased momentum toward real, lasting change. The pandemic and the push for social justice have
Since Amazon Pharmacy launched in November 2020, the prescription drug home-delivery service has led with a primarily online offering. Its value propositions — technology-based customer support, transparent pricing, fast shipping and an app-based interface — are compelling, but without connections to the broader health care ecosystem, organic growth has been challenging. That’s about to change.
We are more than two years into COVID, and the health care industry still has an “edge of your seat” feel — even as the crisis wanes, there’s an uncertainty about what will happen next. This rings especially true for retail pharmacies, which experienced pandemic highs and lows. American consumers applauded as pharmacies elevated the
There is a gap in our nation’s health care system. Pharmacies need to act now if they want to prove they are the right ones to fill it. One of the long-standing gaps in the American health care system is a lack of accessible, efficient and cost-effective services for individuals in need of a routine
The U.S. prescription drug market has reached half a trillion dollars, much of it dominated by large pharmacy service providers. But with a pie this big, it’s little wonder that new players are looking to horn in on the action — in particular “digital native” start-ups that give customers the direct consumer-centric relationship and flexible
The COVID-19 crisis has undoubtedly changed customer behavior, from how people pay to what they buy. But how has the pandemic specifically affected pharmacy customers? Kearney’s pharmacy customer survey from early fall 2020 reveals that COVID-era customers have new ways of shopping, evolving preferences for obtaining prescriptions and increased expectations of their pharmacies. As the
Ever since its launch as an online bookstore 25 years ago, Amazon has ignored traditional economics as it solves customer challenges in new ways — raising expectations and forcing competitors to do better in the process. Over the past few years, Amazon has ramped up the number of experiments, acquisitions and offerings across the health
Today’s retail pharmacies face increasing pressure from all fronts. Governments are aiming to reduce health care costs, and public sentiment is pushing the industry toward a value-based model. The use of high-cost specialty drugs is increasing dispensing complexity and shifting channel volume — at a time when disruptors like Amazon are poised to impact pricing.
At the top of an organization, the leader (CEO or president) holds a unique responsibility: making the whole of the enterprise worth more than the sum of its parts. In chain pharmacy today, this is a particular challenge that requires customer-centric innovation in order to create outsized value. Consider the “parts” that comprise most modern-day
Editor’s note: This is Part I of an article that ran in the 1/21/19 issue of CDR. As legal cannabis-based products continue to find their way to market, promising to redefine entire categories from health, beauty and wellness to food and beverage in their wake, most chain drug retailers are scrambling to calculate the impact
Editor’s note: The fourth in a series of seven articles by A.T. Kearney on the trends that are radically transforming the health sector. By Todd Huseby and Carol Cruickshank Traditionally, the approach to health in the United States has been reactive or at best responsive. Patients visit their providers only when an issue arises; providers
The high value of pharmaceutical shipments has traditionally meant that all parties in the chain drug industry were primarily concerned with quality. They needed a reliable, transparent solution. Given that shipping represented a tiny percentage of drug costs, price was a lesser concern. But recently shipping rates have increased sharply. Is there anything the industry
